Six Times
by Be-Wherever-You-Are
Summary: Six times Flora has been there for the guys in some semblance, and one time they helped her.
1. Riven

TW: Mentioned death, foster homes, depressing thoughts.

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 **Riven**

There was most definitely something on the mind of Riven that day. Though Riven was a hard guy to read, anyone close to him could tell he was having an off day.

He seemed to be on the edge throughout the day. He was quieter. It had seemed he had gone back and reverted to his first year self again, when he had been with Darcy.

And, frankly? It was irritating to them all.

Helia could sense the tension-filled aura that surrounded the magenta haired boy. He decided to avoid him for the time being. Helia wasn't really the emotional type of person, contrary to the romantic-poet type of personality he held. He had no business around him, anyway, so he strayed away.

Timmy had not noticed, due to being turned at the computer when he asked Riven a question about the recent functions on his weapon. He received no response, so he asked again. He jumped when he snapped back, and so Timmy decided to back off.

Nabu, who would usually talk to Riven was gone for the day.

They had been respectful of keeping distant. However, as for the remaining two specialists…

Sky and Brandon, they really hadn't meant anything by their teasing. However, when Sky had made a light-hearted comment to Riven, he instantly snapped back. And the two admittedly still held a rivalry. It wasn't as bad as it had been. However, it seemed that the two had reverted back to their first-year squabbles. Brandon attempted playing mediator, although it was obvious that he was on Sky's side. So much for help.

The squabbling remained as they walked back from training to their rooms.

"God, Sky! Quit being such a pain!" Riven snapped back. Brandon stood in the middle of the two, nervously.

"You're the one who kept screwing up on teamwork maneuvers! Seriously, we're supposed to act like a team! God, what is wrong with you?"

That's when Riven paused. He looked to Sky, disbelief in his eyes before he snapped back his attention to the argument at hand. "I tried, Sky! I really did! It's not my fault that you couldn't handle it!" Although his words held the same amount of venom, it was obvious that he was caught off-handed.

Sky rolled his eyes, oblivious to any changes. "Really now? It didn't seem like you were trying at all! Your stance was pathetic today!" If not before, Riven looked slightly hurt. He took a step back, before spinning around.

"Oh yeah, blame it all on me, don't you?" He muttered, before leaving towards the exit. "I'm going to be the responsible one and end this here." He mumbled, spinning to leave. /

"- Wait, what?" Sky was most definitely confused. Riven tended to banter on before the two had been fighting. Although, Sky sounded a tad bit harsher, he expected Riven to bite back. This was concerning…

Riven marched out. A little dramatic, yes, but his head was spinning. An overwhelming of thoughts filled his head. He had to be alone, he had to be alone-

 _They were disappointed, Riven could tell that much. "Don't cry, Riven. Once you're old enough, you can leave. That is, if they keep you around that long." He thought, his twelve year old head thought._

 _His recent foster parents were different from the others,granted, but they were bound to get rid of him. There never was a good family he was placed in, and Riven doubted they would they would be the change. The last ones sent him back because of , and he quoted, 'disciplinary issues'. His most recent ones seemed nice in the beginning, though Riven knew from experience that it wouldn't last. They did last the longest, though. He gave them that._

 _"Riven, you didn't have to fight him. You could've told the teacher you know." His foster mom sighed, and Riven gave a belligerent shrug. He knew he messed up. He knew he was being sent back._

 _And soon enough, two weeks later, he packed his bags and was sent back to the shelter._

Riven sat down, leaning against a tree. Not the most appealing place, but the trees were nice and gave him shade. Plus, he could easily get away for a little while. He took a deep breath.

Damnit, did you have to argue with Sky?

He knew it was bantering. He knew that he had only meant it for the betterment of him-

 _Did he have to be a screw-up?_

Riven hated it when his thoughts took over. He usually pushed them aside and masked it with duct tape. However, he couldn't stop them. They overflowed in his head, a never-ending mantra of thoughts.

 _You screwed up, Riven._

 _You're the reason the team doesn't get along_

 _You're the reason dad hates you_

 _You're the reason mom di-_

He hadn't realized that someone had approached him before it was too late. Startled, he nearly smacked the person in front of him. Thankfully the person quickly dodged, moving out of the way. He blinked, before realizing he had been crying. He quickly turned around, wiping tears away.

The person stepped back cautiously, not saying anything. There was a moment of silence, before-

"Hello, Riven."

Oh. It was Flora. He wasn't the closest to the flower-fairy, but he was pretty familiar with her. They talked, occasionally. "What do you want." He pretended to not hear the crack in his voice, although he cringed at the voice crack. He could nearly feel Flora's worried gaze.

"I was walking through the forest, when I saw you. Are you-"

"-Alright? Frankly, I'm not, Flora. I would also not like to have this conversation right now. So, just live up to your stereotype and go check out some flowers." He knew he sounded harsh, but he didn't want the company.

He was surprised when Flora didn't take the hint. She usually would have left him alone. Instead, she pulled something from the back of her back. A bouquet..? Before he had time to contemplate what was going on, she placed the flowers down and hugged him closely.

"Riven, I- I'm sorry. Today's the day, isn't it?" She said, softly. Riven was confused. What..?

"Riven, I know that this isn't the ideal place, or person, to talk to this about. However, I want to tell you that you're a great person. You're worth it. She would have thought the same."

Wait.

How did Flora know?

He looked to her, confused and angry. Right. Faeries. He had been against a tree. Flora could sense a tree's emotion. Perhaps even thoughts, which would mean-

"You were rooting around in my head?!" He nearly shrieked, stepping back. No way. He hadn't told anyone of this. He had told parts to Musa, but that had been it. It wasn't fair of Flora to suddenly up and know all of this information.

Flora looked visibly surprised, shaking her head. "No, Riven. You literally dropped your phone out here, and your calendar notification popped up when I checked to see whose phone it was. It read 'Happy birthday, mom.' You never spoke of your family, and you looked upset. I put the pieces together."

Oh. He had been dumb. Flora looked up to him, a warm gaze clear as honey. "...Look. I know you don't know me that much. I know that you would rather wait to open up. But, really Riven. I'm always here if you want to talk, okay? Do you want to talk?"

"...Why should I tell you? You're going to think it's stupid." He finally said, after moments of silence.

"I promise I won't. Riven, we all care about you. You're a part of the team. But, more than that, you're family."

Needless to say, the dam that he had built up had broken as someone had finally broken down on the shield he had spent years on building. He weakly nodded, before talking. And, not once did she patronize or criticize him.

It was from this moment on that he officially opened up to someone, and he had officially declared that he would protect this fairy at all costs. Someone that he could call family.

* * *

Me: I have to update Igor-who and Keeping Up, alongside homework.

Also me: write the new story down-

Hey, everyone! Welcome to my new series. Definitely a bit darker than my usual work, so my rating's going to be a teen instead of kids. Basically, I've really badly been wanting to write this concept down for a while now! As for _Igor Who_ and _Keeping up with the Specialists_ , they may have to wait until February because of exam times. This was my break from homework!

Tell me if you enjoyed this, or leave any criticism down below! Seriously, your reviews keep me going! Peace out. - Lili


	2. Helia

**TW: Transphobia, bullying.** Also, if you feel as though I said/wrote _anything_ wrong, please do not hesitate to correct me. More notes at the end, as always!

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In his family, there was a saying that heroics ran in the blood. While they believed the guys to become specialists and the girls fairies, the heroics still ran.

When Helia was younger, he knew that something was different. He was to become a fairy, but he disliked the idea.

Sure, magic was appealing. He could muse that, at least. But, using it to defeat? He would much rather learn hands on. He wanted to learn to train in combat; to learn more _essential_ hands on stuff. He grew up with pamphlets from Alphea, his mom and dad always hoping that he could become the best fairy he could.

He didn't feel like him.

He didn't feel like a faerie. And, though he had denied it, pushed it down for months, years, he didn't feel like the little princess that his parents had so endearingly called him.

So when he told his mom he wanted to go to Red Fountain at the age of fourteen, the school his grandfather ran and wanted to join the guys, she was astounded at the thought. It had taken years to build Helia the courage to tell them, and it nearly gave him a heart attack to when she gave him a _look_.

"Helena, hun, why do you want to be a specialist? You know that guys attend that school, right?" His mom asked carefully, giving her husband a look.

"Uh-Yeah. Mom, I know." He said, rubbing his back slightly. "I've always appealed the idea more than Alphea. I don't.. Want to be a fairy? I want to be a hero… I just, this is my dream." He said slowly, nearly melting on the spot.

"Helena, love… Do you, uhm" She was at a loss for words. Helia's hands shook at her expression. She looked confused, hurt almost. She looked like she was afraid to say something, and seeing such a scared look on his mom's face made him terrified. His mother had been a powerful faerie who faced all sorts of monsters. His mother knew how to solve anything. And yet, she looked disoriented. Disoriented.

"Listen, mom. I'm sorry for bringing it up- I'm sorry for mentioning it. I'll go to Alphea, and be your little fairy. Please, I'm sorry." He stuttered out, feeling like his oversized hoodie was engulfing him from the inside.

She took his trembling hands, and held them together. She still looked lost, but it seemed to hold a bit of the usual determined, yet kind energy they always had. "Hele- Darling, no. That's not it. It's just- Not what I was expecting. I -love. Do you feel like you- No." Her words were all over, but it seemed she was organizing her thoughts. "Do you feel like a girl, darling?" She asked, looking to him with an unreadable expression in her eyes. Helia shook under her expression, and shook his head, seemingly the only thing he could do. He couldn't speak, he couldn't move-

"Darling… I'm glad you told me." Helia looked surprised. That hadn't been what he was expecting. He was expecting to hear that he was confused. If he couldn't figure out what he was, how would his mom? He was told that mothers knew best, but did they really?

She took a shaky breath, and gave him a watery smile. "Helia, do you know what 'transgender' means?"

And from that day on, Helia was able to figure out a part of himself he had wondered for years on end. His mom, _bless her,_ was confused in the beginning, messing up things and just as lost as him, but she _understood_ and was _willing to help_ and that's all Helia had wanted and more from his dear mother.

He had spent the next day telling his best friend in the world, Flora. She understood what it meant, and accepted him almost immediately. Admittedly, the two cried for an hour. After, they had discussed names for hours on end.

"-Okay, but nothing from that dumb robot lion cartoon Brandon's been talking about." She said, scrunching up her nose. Helia only laughed. Her cousin Brandon, from what he's heard, had a flair for drama. He never met him though, as Brandon lived in Eraklyon.

"Yeah, no. It's a decent show, but I'd rather have something closer to… Well, the other one. Something that feels like me." He laughed.

At the end of the day, they chose something. _Helia._

And yet, it didn't seem they thought the same in Red Fountain.

Helia was two years older than Flora, so he had gone to Red Fountain two years prior. They had bid tearful farewells back in Linphea. Unfortunately, they wouldn't have any contact due to the technology in Linphea.

He knew things would be different. He was Helia. The Helia who loved to do traditional art, and carried sketchbooks everywhere. He was a guy. Who got in because he worked hard for it.

The problem was, is that the guys didn't seem to think the same in Red Fountain.

On multiple occasions, people would question Helia. In his first year, he made the mistake of telling a classmate he thought had become good friends with him. Yet, apparently that hadn't stopped him from spreading it around.

"You mean, they let a _girl_ into the school? That's so weird?"

"-Looks like a guy, though!"

"Wow, bet she got in by sucking up to the principal. Grandpa, right?"

Helia couldn't tolerate this by the end of the year. He hadn't wanted to tell his grandfather why. What if he spoke up to them? He couldn't tolerate it.

Internally, he apologized to his mom. He wanted to be a hero. He couldn't. He had done well in classes and could hold down monsters, but if he wasn't going to gain any respect by being him, what was the point?

However, call it cliche, but it all changed when someone all too familiar spoke to him again. His grandfather still wanted him to come back, and in one of his attempts he had been re-opening the school. He couldn't help but overhear some girls talking.

"-Hey, who's that guy over there?" One girl asked the group of sophomores that had been instructed to show him around premise. A shy voice interrupted the rather brash description he was given moments later. "..I want to meet him."

Helia took a quick look up, only to see the group approaching. He cursed himself. He prepared himself, until-

"-Helia?!"

Now he actually looked up at them. There, stood the group with him. Looking up, he saw wide, green eyes staring back to his own. "-No way…"

The Winx and Specialists exchanged confused looks. "...What's going on?" Stella said after a while, having no idea as to what was going on.

Helia only found his smile growing. "Oh my gosh." He turned to Brandon. "-Lion cats." Brandon blushed slightly, but was still confused. "...What?" Flora's surprised expression only grew, finding herself hug-tackling Helia. "You're here! It's you! You twerp, not sending any letters!" She scolded, although she had happy tears forming. "Wow, you just- Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry." He said gently, grinning.

"...Like I said, what's going on?" Stella rephrased, tilting her head. Sky nodded. "Yeah, why are we bringing up Brandon's ever-loving phase of Voltron?" Brandon flushed deeper, "Guys, I'm right here."

"Helia here, was my very best friend as kids. We were super close until he had to leave." Flora explained, eyes twinkling. "If you're here, that would mean we go on missions together again! Just like we used to, back on Linphea!" She said excitedly.

And Helia, who could never find himself to say no to his best friend, agreed. Brandon raised an eyebrow as the others laughed about the coincidence.

"Hey Helia." He asked later, finding him joining their team a week later. Said guy raised an eyebrow. "Hey Brandon. What's up?" He asked.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Flora's best friend… Oh." Brandon spoke allowed, the gears clicking. Helia felt the air tense. Maybe he had agreed too soon.

But, then he remembered how happy, how excited Flora had been. Surely he could say something.

"Do you have a problem with it?" Helia asked gently, trying not to show his nervousness show. Instead, though, Brandon smiled. Just as his mom had. Just as Flora had.

"Not at all. Welcome to the team." He grinned, patting him on the back. Helia found himself smiling.

He could be- No, he would be a hero. Even if it took some pushing from his best friend.

* * *

So, this actually took me longer to update/write because I wanted to make sure I got things right and in no means wanted to misrepresent anything! However, after some pushing from my exams being over, I decided it was time to update!

Yep, Helia's second! One of my favourite boyos~ Also, I re-wrote their meeting scene as I deemed it differently. In the comics, Flora and Helia had already been childhood friends so it would make no sense to write it as if they just met. So, here's a spin!

Also, the amount? Of attention this story got? I found it astonishing! You guys are the best! Your reads/reviews/follows warmed me. You guys are too sweet!

Anywho, that's all for now! I'm still planning for Igor-Who so I'm not sure when the next chapter is going to be, but keep an eye out! Lili out. (^0^)


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